...If the feds hadn't descended on him with 200 armed agents, this never would have hit the news cycle...

...The fact of the Bundy case you keep overlooking is that the only ones that threatened to kill people were federal agents...

Simply untrue. Bundy has been threatening violence for years.

From 2012 The suit was filed after the Bureau of Land Management canceled plans to round up and remove the cattle last month because of safety concerns. Those concerns related to Bundy vowing to protect his property rights, The Associated Press reported.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/may/14/us-sues-southern-nevada-rancher-grazing-dispute/

Over the years, the Department of Justice has more than once canceled BLM plans to round up the trespass cattle after blatant threats of violence from Bundy and his supporters

https://www.hcn.org/blogs/goat/in-nevada-delicate-20-year-standoff-with-blm-ends-in-a-tense-roundup

I can list more quotes of Bundy and his wife saying things to the effect that "we have guns and will do whatever it takes to stop the roundup" and calling for a Range War. If the BLM had announced a month ago that "we have guns and are looking for a Range War" how would you react?

So Bundy and supporters have been making it clear for years that they would be willing to kill law enforcement.

I challenge anyone to show me another example where the BLM has showed up so heavily armed. I would think that even the most biased person would recognize it was because a "Range War" was being called for by Bundy. When you threaten the lives of law enforcement doing their sworn duty, it would be delusional to expect them to not be able to fully defend themselves.